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Judge orders Ventana Grill in Pismo Beach closed amid safety concerns

September 6, 2026

By KAREN VELIE

With concerns that Ventana Grill in Pismo Beach could fall into the ocean, on Aug. 27 a judge ordered the restaurant to shut down. The closure of the popular event center has left many brides and event hosts scrambling for new venues.

Management at Custom House’s Ventana Grill has painted the issue as a dispute with their landlord. CCC, the landlord, argues they are protecting the public from “serious injury or death.”

In a motion for an injunction filed on Aug. 13, CCC accuses Custom House of prioritizing profits over public safety.

“The stakes here are real,” CCC wrote in the Aug. 13 motion. “The action here is not a mere lease dispute arising from alleged economic harm. This matter is about ending a completely avoidable threat to human lives in Pismo Beach.

“While Custom House seemingly remains content to wait for the worst to happen–all while it continues to profit from the daily work of the very people it is putting at risk–the CCC parties cannot stand by in perpetuity and hope for the best.”

Custom House has leased the property since 2012 under a long-term lease.

A balcony failure in Dec. 2023, led CCC to engage structural engineers to determine the safety of the decks, which were then closed.

On April 26, 2024, a section of the bluff face broke off and fell into the ocean, according to court records. A subsequent investigation discovered a sea cave directly under the restaurant building.

CCC contacted Custom House on July 17, 2025 with a request they immediately shut down all Ventana Grill operations. Planned repairs were expected to take more than six months.

Planned repairs to Ventana Grill building in Pismo Beach

However, Custom House argued the building was not unsafe and that CCC was attempting to get out of their lease.

During an inspection in 2025, “GeoKinetics identified signs of cracking, distress and deterioration,” according to the motion. The conditions support findings by GeoKinetics and others “that a toppling event is inevitable and materially increase the risk that such bluff-failure event will precipitate partial or total structural collapse of the restaurant building.”

On Aug. 27, San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Craig van Rooyen ordered Custom House’s Ventana Grill to close by 5 p.m. on Sept. 18.

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13 Comments

A property owner trying to shut down a business that leases from them is odd. This sight has seen slope stabilization at least twice that I remember, where’s the city of Pismo Beach in all this, it’s usually our government trying to close down business.


1

This cliff hanging mystery has now been solved. It’s all down hill from here.


6

Seems like a slippery slope argument…


3

These jokes are wearing thin…


-2

It’s a race to the bottom…


-2

Judge van Rooyen is a sharp guy. Going to give him the benefit if the doubt.


g


2

Seems like a bit of over-reaction. Maybe these property owners have an ulterior motive, but it seems like one could pump concrete into the sea cave at a super low tide, small swell day, and call it good. The rest of the bluff looks stable enough.


-9

To simple and does not employ years of study dollars to put a cork in it.


-6

Possibly. But, had he allowed it to remain open, three things could happen:


1) The cliff gives way and the buildings goes down, possibly with lives endangered.


2) The cliff holds, the building stays, but remains unused.


3) The cliff holds for another 8 years until the EIR, Coastal Impact, CCC additional red tape, discovery of a rare rock, discovery that water is wet, and Seagull poop is a cure for cancer investigations are complete. Then holds for another 6 years until the repair project, and 2300 added pages of changes to the original plan, is approved. Then holds for another 3 years during discussions of where to obtain the necessary materials that will not create an unnatural alteration of the bluff and beach with non-native rock species, and biodegradable concrete that won’t harm the nesting Snowy Plovers 12 miles away.


Then, the contractors take one look and say. “Umm, that’s natural, and we can’t stop it.”


Pretty sure the last one, will happen…


1

Not likely, the same engineering firm that determined it unsafe will likely come up with a fix. Then a contractor will apply the repair as prescribed by the engineer with limitations. This is where the lawyers come in to exclude unusual ocean and storm conditions that may occur such as sever el neno, rising sea level, earthquakes, tsunamis and any other event that my cause damage.


-1

We are no different that Napal. Their town in a river bottom is like our hotels along the pounding surf. Who’s paying that insurance bill? Is it the premiums for fire insurance in a stucco housing tract?


-10

I guess the judge couldn’t order it closed for crappy, pretentious overpriced food.


7

If he could he would be able to close any of the Blast places and many more owned by corporate entities.


10